2025 four-star RB commit Jasper Parker brings a unique blend of size, agility, and pass-catching ability to Michigan’s future backfield. Let’s dive into the film.
Michigan hosted its BBQ at the Big House last weekend, wrapping up the summer recruiting period. The Wolverines currently hold commitments from 16 prospects in the 2025 cycle and the class is ranked in the top-15 in the country.
Running backs coach Tony Alford has been hard at work on the trail since his transition to Ann Arbor and has landed the pledge of two unique backfield prospects. Today, we’ll take a look at Jasper Parker’s film and highlight what stands out about his game.
Background
Parker is a composite four-star running back from Marrero, Louisiana and is ranked as the ranked No. 331 overall and No. 25 at his position in the class. Parker attends Archbishop Shaw High School which is the alma mater of Michigan wide receiver coach Ron Bellamy, who played a pivotal role in Parker’s recruitment.
In March, Bellamy travelled to Louisiana to see Parker and his high school teammate, four-star receiver Jacob Washington. Eventually, both were offered and are now committed to the Wolverines.
Parker maintained a relatively low profile during his recruitment but took official visits to Oklahoma State and North Carolina this summer. He eventually took his official visit to Ann Arbor the weekend of June 14 and surprisingly announced his commitment at the final dinner of the weekend among recruits and staff.
Measurables
Parker has an intriguing build for the position at 6-foot-1 and 200 pounds. His frame is long and athletic and is prime for adding mass as he matures. While some other backs in his class are already quite filled out, Parker has the upside for continued physical development at the next level. Justin Tress, Michigan’s Director of Strength & Conditioning, will team up with nutritionist Abigail O’Connor to sculpt Parker’s frame once on campus.
He self reports a 4.5 40 yard dash time, but there aren’t many verified testing numbers available from Parker beyond that.
High School Tape
The first thing that jumps off the film is Parker’s shiftiness. For a running back his size, he has a preternatural ability to put his cleats in the ground, quickly change directions, and make a defender miss. There is no comparison in terms of their overall games, but Parker’s ability to win vs a defender in space is reminiscent of a trait that often drew praise from former head coach Jim Harbaugh when discussing Blake Corum .
The skill to make a defender miss in that way isn’t something that athletes, especially ones of Parker’s size, are able to learn through drill work or by watching film; to quote Coach Harbaugh, they either “crawl out of the crib with it” or they don’t.
Parker pairs that shiftiness with some really nice patience out of the backfield. He will press holes and setup his offensive line’s blocks to out-leverage defenders before exploding into the second level.
The play at the 2:17 mark above really encompasses Parker’s ability as a running back. He takes the handoff just as a second level defender comes barreling through the line, Parker identifies the vacated B-gap and bursts through an arm tackle attempt from the defender. He then sets his sights on the safety coming down in run support just as he gets through the line of scrimmage. This is when the magic really happens — Parker feigns the safety with a dead leg move to the right and in response, the safety helplessly falls to a knee before Parker plants his foot and explodes up the field for a nearly 70-yard gain.
The other skillset that flashes on tape is Parker’s pass-catching ability. He told The Wolverine’s EJ Holland ($) he really likes the plan Alford and offensive coordinator Kirk Campbell pitched to him.
“They acknowledged I’m a three-down back,” Parker said. “I can catch the ball out of the backfield and go counter and power. They said they want a layered back in their offense. That’s something that Donovan Edwards does really well.”
Although Parker may not possess the speed Edwards does currently, the comparison in terms of their versatility is notable. At this summer’s Rivals Five-Star camp, Parker made waves when he showcased his route running and hands in both the 7-on-7 competition and in 1-on-1 drills.
GO BLUE 〽️〽️〽️ https://t.co/uHhqQAFR0b
— Jasper Parker (@jasperparker06) June 29, 2024
The main critique I have for Parker’s game currently is his top end speed. In the aforementioned play, Parker breaks into the open field but is ultimately tracked down by a defender. Parker is well aware of this and told Michael Smeltzer of The Blue Wall , “You can always improve on your top end (speed). Just being able to separate yourself…from the second level of defenders to the third level of defenders. So I would say I can always improve on my top end.”
To improve his speed, Parker has been working out at a speed school in Louisiana this offseason.
With his build, I would also love to see Parker continue to develop his ability to run behind his pads and power through defenders at the point of contact. He does showcase his physicality in spurts with the ball in his hands and as a blocker in the backfield on passing downs. I’ll be keeping an eye out for early returns on his physical maturation once his senior year begins.
Expectations at Michigan
When he enters Michigan’s strength and conditioning program, I think we’ll see Parker improve on his top end speed and unlock his ability as a physical runner as his frame fills out. Some have compared Parker to Hassan Haskins, and I think in terms of build that is a reasonable comparison (Haskins measured just north of 6-foot-1 and 228 pounds at the NFL Combine in 2022).
We’re more than a year away from Parker’s freshman season at Michigan, so It remains to be seen if he’ll be a first-year contributor. But with his unique combination of size, agility and playmaking ability, Parker will be competing for snaps in what is projected to be a competitive running back room.
True freshman Jordan Marshall enrolled at Michigan this summer and will look to acclimate himself before taking over as the presumed lead back in 2025 after the departure of Donovan Edwards and Kalel Mullings. Could Parker serve as the change-of-pace back early in his career to spell Marshall? The early path to the field for Parker is likely via his threat as a receiver out of the backfield.
The pitch from Campbell and Alford that highlighted the versatility of Edwards can be used as a blueprint for Parker’s eventual role at Michigan. Fans can look forward to his ankle-breaking agility and playmaking as a pass-catcher out of the backfield during his career in the maize and blue.